Fireworks
by DigiExpert
Summary: Aaeru and Neviril find themselves amongst a crowd of people, gathered for something. Neviril realizes it must have to do with the holiday she'd read about, but neither of the two know exactly what it entails.


**This was the second request I received on simoun_sibyllae from iroh_fancier. Their prompt was this: Aaeru/Neviril post-series. Can be anything that shows them together happily and can include sex. This fic doesn't include sex, but it does show the two, and ties in nicely with the 4th of July holiday coming up in a couple of weeks! Enjoy!**

Crowds of people filled the open field, setting up chairs and blankets. The sun hadn't yet completely set, and somewhere, someone played bluegrass music. Laughter and chatter drifted on the summer breeze, which was light enough to cool, but not to forget the summer humidity of the day.

"What are all these people doing, Neviril? I thought this was an empty field." asked Aaeru, looking around in amazement at how quickly the group had gathered. "Do you think they'll find the Simoun?"

"It's some kind of holiday tradition, from what I understand," replied Neviril. "The book said it was to celebrate independence. There was a war going on, and some kind of treaty, or something similar was signed. And no, we hid the Simoun pretty far in."

"Good. We don't need someone trying to fly it." Briefly, the memory of the encounter with the Argentine soldier floated to the front of her memory, but she pushed it away. It wasn't something she wanted to think of.

They passed a group of children playing catch with a ball. It was a medium sized rubber ball, and the group of young children tossed it around, giggling and telling jokes. Families sat nearby, watching over their children, and laughing right along with them. Some passed the time by reading books or working with needles, though Aaeru wasn't sure what they were trying to make. Still others munched on snacks from the large plastic boxes near their blankets. Aaeru's stomach rumbled, and she realized they hadn't eaten in awhile.

"Do we have any food left, Neviril? I'm starved."

"There's still some in the compartment in the Simoun. We can get it later." Neviril was also busy observing their surroundings, and Aaeru knew she would use the information to figure out what this world was like. It seemed as though they'd been here a few times before, and each time they'd discovered strange holidays. This one couldn't be any worse than the one that involved a naked baby.

The ball from the group of children Aaeru had been watching moments before soared over their heads, and landed behind them. Aaeru turned and picked up the ball.

"Throw it over here to me!" called a little boy.

"No over here!" cried his friend.

Grinning, Aaeru threw the ball over her head with both hands, watching as it landed in the arms of the youngest looking child there- a girl. Neviril gave her a look, and her grin widened. "She reminded me of Limone," replied Aaeru.

The crowd began to settle down as the darkness took over. Some groups still played, trying to use night vision that they really didn't have. The sky was dark, and millions of stars dotted the sky. "This reminds me of grandpa's farm!" exclaimed Aaeru happily. "And the fireflies are out too!"

"I think it would be best if we took a seat on the ground like everyone else. Something must be ready to happen," remarked Neviril.

Aaeru looked around, trying to observe what the others were doing. It was best to blend in with their surrounds as best they could, after all. She saw the males and females sitting close together, and some females in front of the males, while the males wrapped their arms around the females' middles. She decided that's what she would do with Neviril. She was much to excited to care of they were the only female couple around. She could see the bright stars and the fireflies. It was like she was home.

Neviril pulled her from her daydream. "Come on, Aaeru. We need to find a spot," she whispered.

"Here works!" replied Aaeru, sitting down. She copied what she had saw and spread her legs before pulling Neviril down with her.

"Aaeru!" Neviril exclaimed, surprised.

"I wanted to hold you," answered Aaeru, "Just like they were doing. You said we had to blend in."

"I know, but—"

A whistling in the sky caught both girls' attention and they watched, their bodies wanted to up and run, thinking it to be a bomb. No one else moved, but watched with baited anticipation. There was a flash and then a burst of color in the sky. It floated down and then disappeared. More whistling took its place.

"What is it?" asked Aaeru.

"I'm not sure," replied Neviril. "I don't remember reading about them."

More of the colorful bursts exploded in various colors and sounds. Some whistled as they fell, others seemed to patter. There were large and small shapes, and often they mixed together. It was hard to hear each other over the noise of the sky bursts, so the two went quiet, watching with curious amazement. Aaeru pulled Neviril close to her, arms around her waist. Neviril lay back against Aaeru, comfortable in the girl's embrace.

The spectacular light show lasted for twenty more minutes, though to Aaeru and Neviril, it felt much shorter. Before they knew it, the sky was dark once more, the hazy outlines of smoke still visible. All around them, the crowd cheered and called out before standing up. Aaeru and Neviril did the same. The families, children, and other groups began gathering them items they had brought with them.

"I think it's best to leave now, while there's still a crowd," whispered Neviril. "We'll be able to get into the forest more easily."

Aaeru nodded and took Neviril's hand. "Let's go." She led Neviril, weaving through the crowd of people trying to leave. No one gave them a second glance, considering them to be another set of teenagers having fun together.

Back at the Simoun, Aaeru began rummaging through the emergency compartment, looking for the food that Neviril had promised was still there. She pulled out a bag, a jar, and her pocket knife, and settled into the auriga cockpit to make her sandwich. "You want one?" asked Aaeru.

"Sure," replied Neviril.

Aaeru passed back a sandwich when she had finished creating it. She began munching on her own. "Swtrung fwoad," she remarked, mouth full of bread and peanut butter.

"What?"

Chewing and swallowing, Aaeru tried again. "Strange food. What kinda sandwich is this again?"

"Peanut butter. It was one of the few things that I could buy with the money we earned that would last for awhile."

"Hey, Neviril?"

"Yes, Aaeru?"

"Can we sleep under the stars tonight in the field? I'd really like to. It reminds me of grandpa and his farm. We used to sleep outside on summer nights."

"Of course, Aaeru. As soon as we're sure everyone's left, we'll go back to the field."

The two of them made their way back to the field a couple hours later. The last of the crowd from the celebration had finally packed up and disappeared. Aaeru carried the set of blankets under one arm and held Neviril's hand with the other. She was excited to sleep out with Neviril. They'd often do it on the worlds in which it was safe and viable to do so, but they had never done so on this world.

They spread out the largest blanket and settled on it, Neviril resting her head on Aaeru's chest. The fingers of her left hand intertwined with the fingers of Aaeru's right hand. They were silent, relaxing after another long day. Neviril felt her eyelids growing heavy, and she had nearly drifted off when Aaeru spoke up.

"Do you think those stars have any special meaning?"

"It's possible. I haven't read anything on astrology. Perhaps you should look it up when we have a chance," suggested Neviril.

Aaeru shook her head. "Books aren't the same as seeing it like this. Grandpa used to tell me all about the stars when we would sleep out. I never had to look in a book."

"But you might learn about what the stars here mean."

Again, Aaeru shook her head. "I'd rather just watch them with you, Neviril. I like it better this way." She squeezed Neviril's hand.

"Maybe you're right," agreed Neviril. She couldn't deny the sense of calm she felt under the open sky with the one she loved. A book couldn't replace that feeling; words just weren't right to explain it.


End file.
